North Carolina legislators approved last week the fiscal year 2008-09 budget adjustment, providing additional funds for several TBED initiatives within the higher education system. Earlier this year, Gov. Mike Easley unveiled recommendations to use surplus funds to expand university projects aimed at supporting TBED (see the May 14, 2008 issue of the Digest).
 

California

Technology-focused incubators are an important component to fostering entrepreneurial development in a region by nurturing businesses in the earliest stages of development and helping them grow into larger companies that employ high-wage workers and bring new technologies to the market. The following select announcements provide an overview of new incubators from across the nation, illustrating the vital role of entrepreneurial development in growing high-tech regional economies.

The Beaver County (Pa.) CO-OP announced it will change its name to StartingGate. The incubator will continue to assist entrepreneurs and new business start-ups and help expand existing businesses.

Joe Dedman was chosen as the first executive director of the Southeast Indiana WIRED.

Brian DuBoff was named the director of Maryland's southern region Small Business Development Center, which is hosted by the College of Southern Maryland.

John Austin is the newly appointed executive director of the New Economy Initiative for Southeast Michigan.

Tom Cech announced he will return to the University of Colorado at Boulder next year to pursue laboratory research and teaching after eight years as president of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute.

Legislators in Alaska, Iowa and Oklahoma recently approved funding for several TBED-related initiatives within state operating and capital budgets for the upcoming fiscal year.

Operating with a $152 million surplus for the current fiscal year, Gov. Mike Easley unveiled his recommended budget adjustments for FY 2008-09 earlier this week, providing additional funding for university projects and expanding TBED initiatives. North Carolina is one of a shrinking number of states to still project black ink for its next fiscal year.
 

The U.S. Department of Commerce's Economic Development Administration (EDA) recently announced Ben Franklin Technology Partners (BFTP) as the winner of the "Excellence in Technology-led Economic Development" award, as part of EDA's Excellence in Economic Development Awards 2008. BFTP, created in 1983, has regional offices in Lehigh Valley, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh and State College.

The Aerospace, Manufacturing and Information Technology (AMIT) Cluster of Southern Arizona has consolidated its operations with the Arizona Technology Council.

Joan Myers, president and CEO of Raleigh-based N.C. Technology Association, is the 2005-2007 president for the Council of Regional Information Technology Associations (CRITA).

Alaska Gov. Frank Murkowski appointed Bill Noll as commissioner of the Department of Commerce, Community, and Economic Development. Noll has been serving as the governor's communications director.

Ronnie Bryant, president and chief operating officer for the Pittsburgh Regional Alliance, is leaving to become president and CEO of the 16-county Charlotte Regional Partnership in North Carolina.

Albert Clough is the new Commissioner of the Alaska Department of Commerce, Community and Economic Development, following the resignation of Edgar Blatchford last week.

Proposals that promise job creation and economic growth have taken center stage in several state legislatures. Lawmakers who recognize the importance of R&D, tech commercialization, access to risk capital, and investment in higher education are fighting for passage of TBED-focused bills in the final months of their states' 2011 legislative sessions.

To ensure funding is available in future years for students who complete a more rigorous high school curriculum focused on math and science, the legislature set aside $400 million for performance-based scholarships in the capital budget. The FY12 operating budget also includes $6 million in first-year funding for the program, which will be available to high school students graduating in 2011.

Included below are recent development plans and groundbreaking news for research parks announced by officials in Connecticut, Colorado, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Nebraska, North Carolina, Rhode Island and Wisconsin.

TBED People
SSTI board members Rob Atkinson and Rebecca Bagley and SSTI member Stephen Tang were appointed to the U.S. Department of Commerce Innovation Advisory Board. The 15-member board will guide a study of U.S. economic competitiveness and innovation to help inform national policies.

Lawmakers in several states wrapped up their 2011 sessions in time for the new fiscal year, which begins on July 1 for most states, allocating funds and passing bills in support of tech-based economic development. Read more...

The North Carolina Innovation Fund has announced plans to support a new accelerator that would promote life science technology transfer from the state's universities. Published reports indicate that the accelerator would launch later this month and focus on companies developing biopharmaceutical therapeutics, diagnostics and medical devices. Participating startups could receive capital investment from the accelerator's associated funds.

Holli Baumunk, vice president of the Metro Denver Economic Development Corporation, has been named president and CEO of the Colorado BioScience Association.

North Carolina Governor Bev Perdue recently signed off on a package of economic incentives for small businesses, including tax credits for interactive digital media firms, particularly those that collaborate with the state's research universities or community colleges. Digital media companies, including video game studios, are eligible for a 15 percent income tax credit; 20 percent for higher education collaborations. The bill also provides a 35 percent tax credit for research performed within one of the state's Eco-Industrial Parks.

Several components of Gov. Bev Perdue's JobsNOW small business package related to tech-based economic development efforts in North Carolina were approved in the FY11 budget signed into law on June 30. A program to provide matching funds for Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) will see its budget more than double in the second year of the biennium and life science programs will receive more than $22 million in recurring appropriations. The enacted budget also extends to Jan.

North Carolina's Golden LEAF Foundation is seeking proposals for a special $4 million initiative to improve STEM education for 4th-to-9th graders in rural, economically-distressed and/or tobacco-dependent regions of the state. Applicants must be a governmental entity or 501(c)3 organization, and are eligible to receive up to $750,000 in funding. The program is seeking projects that have a regional focus and connect educational outcomes to the needs of local industry sectors. Letters of intent are due September 7, 2010.

Specialized and high-tech incubators provide crucial services and resources to promote and enhance Commercialization & Entrepreneurship, one of the six thematic tracks of this year's annual conference. Three sessions tied to this theme will be explored during SSTI's annual conference, focusing on direct lessons from successful and proven TBED programs, regional innovation clustering, and more. They include:

• Distributed, Non-University Models for Commercializing New Technologies